Women's Bantabaa aspiration is always to tell a story that has never been told and bring a story to public that are always waving the flag of freedom yet standby silently with the concerning situation of the people, their narratives, their perspectives, their understanding of the world around them, without feeling that they are constantly defending their religious and cultural identity.

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

The Banjul-based Special Criminal Court, come July 24, would make a ruling on the treason suspect, Alieu Lowe’s claim, that state investigators forced him to make the statement that the prosecutors wanted to tender against him in court.

Justice Emmanuel Nkea’s ruling is expected to bring an end to the mini-trial (voire dire), which was launched to establish the veracity of Mr Lowe’s claims that his statement, whose content was not disclosed, was obtained under duress.

On Thursday July 10, defense lawyer, Borry S. Touray, summed up his argument in the voire dire, which heard at least three witnesses.

Mariama Colley, the wife of a detained prison officer urges the High Court in Banjul to order for the state authorities to release his husband, who has been under detention for over six years.

Alfusainey Jammeh, a native of President Yahya Jammeh’s native village of Kanilai was arrested since October 19, 2005.

In a 12-paragraph affidavit presented before Justice AbdullahiMikilive yesterday, Mrs Jammeh explains the trauma she is going through as a result of her husband’s detention

“My husband, Alfusainey Jammeh has never been taken to any court of law in The Gambia and charge with an offence, but continues to be held in indefinite detention against his will,” she says in a statement read on her behalf by defense lawyer, Moses Richards.

“As a housewife with 3 children who are in their formative years no assistance from anyone, I am finding it difficult and sometimes impossible to pay my children’s school fees, provide them with food, clothing, shelter and medical care.

“In the interest of justice that this honorable court considers mine and my family’s constraints and grant the orders that I herein pray for.”

Lawyer Richards in moving the affidavit urged the court to free Mr Jammeh from “the bondage of illegality under which he and his family have belabored for six years and more.”

According to Lawyer Ricahrds, Mr Jammeh, since his detention, was not informed the reasons for his arrest and was not brought to any court of law.

“My lord, in view of this, we urge the honorable court to respect and uphold Mr Jammeh’s constitutional right and order his immediate release conditionally or unconditionally after six years and seven month unlawful incarceration.”

He said the detention of Mr Jammeh has been brought by some person exercising a discretionary power, administrative or otherwise, which may be exercise wrongly.

“It is inherent in all discretionary power that, it includes the power to make mistakes” he said adding, that “if such was the case in the instant court, we submit that the courts of law have inherent jurisdiction, as matter of common law”

However, the state represented by MsSankareh, told the court that the Inspector General of Police, is not responding, even though they have written to him twice.

Lawyer Richards objected when the state counsel said they needed more time.

“The Inspector General of Police has no information about this man. How long would you want to keep this man in jail after 6 years,” he said.

The judge however, said he will give the state some time to reply on point of law.

Captain Ebrima Ngum dismissed as false allegation that he sexually harassed a fired junior female officer, Yama Mendy, who stands accused of false information at the magistrates’ court in Banjul.

Capt. Ngum, officer in command of supplies and transportation at Yundum barracks, was testifying as prime state witness against Yama Mendy.

Soldier Yama Mendy was put on trial when she addressed a petition to the President’s Office, accusing that Capt Ebrima Ngum was responsible for her dismissal from the army for turning down his sexual advances.

An intelligence officer attached to the State House on Thursday July 10, testified against the man who allegedly ran into the army barracks at Farafenni and asked soldiers to help him overthrow President Yahya Jammeh.

Foday Gassama, in his 60s, is facing one count of treason at the High Court in Banjul, presided over by AbdullahiMikilive.

If the testimony of AbdoulhamidAdiamoh is anything to go by, his one-week detention at Mile 2, has left him hearing-impaired, perhaps temporally.

“I can’t hear properly, I have infection on my ear,” the Nigerian-born proprietor and editor of TODAY, a privately-owned newspaper in The Gambia, informed the magistrates’ court in Banjul on Thursday June 28.

This was before he was declared guilty of contempt, for‘attacking’ a defense counsel and ‘analysing’ the facts of an ongoing false information trial against Gumbo Touray, a former top Gambia University official.

The defense counsel for Gumbo Touray, former director international affairs, University of The Gambia, has challenged the professorship of the first Gambian-born vice chancellor of UTG, Professor Mohammadou M. O Kah..

Badou S Conteh has described Kah’s professorship as false because, he claimed, the university that conferred him, was not recognised by the Nigerian government.

“Your certificate of professorship is not from a university, but from an individual,”Conteh said. Prof Kah however told the court that the counsel’s statement was just an opinion.

Adismissed female soldier has insisted that she was not lying when she told the President’s Office that she was fired from the Gambia Armed Forces for turning down sexual invitation of a superior army officer.

Yama Mendy yesterday made her appearance at the Banjul Magistrates’ Court.

One should not be forced to stay in a marriage because consent of both parties is a necessity, Justice Marie Saine Firdaus, a member of the Female Lawyers Association of The Gambia, said.

The former justice minister explained that marriage, even in Islam, is by consent and one should not be forced. “We are partners in this whole relationship, and all marriages recognised in The Gambia should be protected by the government”.

Mrs. Saine was presenting a document on marriage and family recently during a day’s seminar for Gambia state security officers, traditional and religious leaders on the Women’s Act, 2010.

The Act, which was introduced in 2010, condemns the practice of forced marriage. It provides that every woman is entitled to marry a man she wants, yet parents or guardians, especially fathers, do not ask for the consent of the girl children.

Followers

Follow by Email

About Me

Binta A Bah is a young Gambian journalists/blogger who is excited, on the sustainability reporting front which she took as massive a headway as a career. She is the publisher of women’s Bantabaa, an online blog which focuses on human rights, particularly women’s right, press freedom and freedom of expression. She started the journalism trade with The Daily News in 2009 while pursuing a one year certificate course in journalism at Insight Training Center. She hold a diploma in journalism. At The Daily News, she rose through the ranks to become a senior judicial affairs correspondent. She has a vast experience of covering high profile cases including treason trials. She run the ‘Musoolula Bantabaa’ on the Daily News, a weekly column that focuses on women’s affairs. In 2011, she was awarded The Daily News Journalist of the year. She now works with the Standard Newspaper as an associate editor following the closure of The Daily News by state authorities.